Online Reporter
George Maponga
Masvingo Bureau
Tourism and Hospitality Industry Minister Barbra Rwodzi has challenged tourism businesses in Masvingo to take advantage of this year’s edition of the Sanganai/Hlanganani World Tourism Expo to be hosted by the province and market their heritage tourism products to the world.
Masvingo will host this year’s Sanganai/Hlanganani World Tourism Expo edition from September 9 to 12 .
This was necessitated by the Second Republic’s decision to decentralise hosting of key national events and programmes to provinces in line with the mantra “leaving no one and no place behind”.
Speaking at Amai’s Masvingo Provincial Traditional Cookout competition, which is the brainchild of First Lady Amai Dr Auxillia Mnangagwa at Masvingo Polytechnic, Minister Rwodzi said events such as Sanganai/Hlanganani World Tourism Expo are once-in-a-lifetime opportunities for tourism players.
“This year, Masvingo will be hosting the Sanganai/Hlanganani World Tourism Expo in September after last year’s edition was held in Mutare, so I want to challenge tourism players here to take advantage of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to showcase their heritage tourism products to the world,” she said.
“Some may never get this opportunity again because Sanganai/Hlanganani will only return to Masvingo after 10 years because all the provinces will take turns to host the expo.”
Minister Rwodzi praised President Mnangagwa and First Lady Amai Dr Mnangagwa for promoting heritage-based tourism development that has made gastronomy a key plank of the country’s tourism.
She said culinary tourism has the potential to sustain socio-economic growth through employment creation and income generation.
Minister Rwodzi said her ministry wants to help Masvingo achieve its targeted gross domestic product of US$8 billion by 2030 through the exploitation of opportunities that abound in the tourism sector.
Speaking at the same event, Masvingo Provincial Affairs and Devolution Minister Ezra Chadzamira said tourism is a key component of the province’s socio-economic growth prospects.
Great Zimbabwe Hotel chef Mr Ignatius Marekera was the overall winner of this year’s provincial Cook-out competition.
